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Honestly, some real skills do disappear with long-term unemployment, like getting up on time every day. Even working a made-up job is probably better. But rea

Honestly, some real skills do disappear with long-term unemployment, like getting up on time every day. Even working a made-up job is probably better. But real job skills do disappear, too. If one person has been working with machine tools 40 hours a week while the other hasn't used machine tools for six months, hiring the first is the rational thing to do. Personally, as a software engineer, I've enjoyed my bouts of unemployment, because I've had the chance to deep dive into new things I never had the chance while working full time, and I've come out of them more employable. (Although I'm in the job hunt now while still employed, and recruiters and employers seem to be giant flakes, maybe because I'm not calling them twice a day, or maybe because they just suck.) But this isn't the norm.

arscan 14y ago
> If one person has been working with machine tools 40 hours a week while the other hasn't used machine tools for six months, hiring the first is the rational thing to do yes, but the point is that companies would even prefer hiring people that have been doing work in a different industry recently than someone who is 6 months unemployed but with experience in the same industry. I think it simply comes down to employers automatically assuming that you have some sort of major flaw if you've been unemployed for so long.
el_fuser 14y ago
* I've enjoyed my bouts of unemployment, because I've had the chance to deep dive into new things I never had the chance while working full time, and I've come out of them more employable.* It follows that staying in one job for a long period would tend to make you less employable... And indeed I've witnessed this very thing.